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Tom: Employers complain that people graduating from high [#permalink]
03 Jul 2008, 10:12

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Difficulty:

(N/A)

Question Stats:

0%(00:00) correct
100%(01:36) wrong based on 1 sessions

Tom: Employers complain that people graduatingfrom high school too often lack the vocationalskills required for full-time employment.Therefore, since these skills are best acquired onthe job, we should require high school students towork at part-time jobs so that they acquire theskills needed for today’s job market.

Mary: There are already too few part-time jobs forstudentswhowant towork, and simply requiringstudents to work will not create jobs for them.

Which one of the following most accurately describeshow Mary’s response is related to Tom’s argument?

(A) It analyzes an undesirable result of undertakingthe course of action that Tomrecommends.(B) It argues that Tom has mistaken an unavoidabletrend for an avoidable one.(C) It provides information that is inconsistent withan explicitly stated premise in Tom’sargument.(D) It presents a consideration that undercuts anassumption on which Tom’s argument depends.(E) It defends an alternative solution to the problemthat Tom describes.

Yep, D.Tom's assumption is that there are enough jobs available for all kids, and therefore he reaches the conclusion that making jobs mandatory will help kids.Mary undercuts this assumption, and effectively takes down Tom's argument through undercutting an assumption on which Tom's argument depends

Tom: Employers complain that people graduating from high school too often lack the vocational skills equired for full-time employment. Therefore, since these skills are best acquired on the job, we should require high school students to work at part-time jobs so that they acquire the skills needed for today’s job market. Mary: There are already too few part-time jobs for students who want to work, and simply requiring students to work will not create jobs for them.

Which one of the following most accurately describes how Mary’s response is related to Tom’s argument?

(A) It analyzes an undesirable result of undertaking the course of action that Tom recommends.(B) It argues that Tom has mistaken an unavoidable trend for an avoidable one.(C) It provides information that is inconsistent with an explicitly stated premise in Tom’s argument.(D) It presents a consideration that undercuts an assumption on which Tom’s argument depends.(E) It defends an alternative solution to the problem that Tom describes.

My answer is D)

Tom concludes that "If students are required to work part-time, then they will acquire vocational skills. To come up with this conclusion, Tom must assume that there are jobs available for students. However, Mary attack Tom's assumption by saying that there are too few part-time jobs for student.